Garment finishing machine with fluid control casing and mesh type bag



May 28, 1968 A ALOI 3,385,485

GARMENT FINISHING MACHINE WITH FLUID CONTROL CASING AND MESH TYPE BAG Filed Feb. 16, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Alfie A101 /4 v INVENTOR.

May 28, 1968 A. ALOI 3,335,485

GARMENT FINISHING MACHINE WITH FLUID CONTROL CASING AND MESH TYPE BAG Filed Feb. 16, 1967- 2 Sheets-Sheet a Alfred 4/01 IN VENTOR.

United States Patent 3,385,485 GARMENT FINISHING MACHINE WITH FLUID CONTROL CASING AND MESH TYPE BAG Alfred Aloi, 116 Old Bergen Road, Jersey City, NJ. 07605 Filed Feb. 16, 1967, Ser. No. 616,515 2 Claims. (Cl. 223-70) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A garment finishing machine having a frame supporting a bag on which a garment to be finished is positioned, and also having an outlet for pressurized fluid such as air or steam in the lower portion of the frame. A casing is provided around the fluid outlet for directing the fluid upwardly into the upper portion of the bag, and the lower portion of the bag has areas of open mesh material through which the pressurized fluid may escape outwardly after being diverted downwardly from the upper portion of the bag, so that the bag is automatically selfadjusting to the shape of the garment without stretching the latter and without the use of mechanical bag constrictors.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in garment finishing machines, particularly machines of the general type having a frame for supporting a bag on which is positioned a garment to be finished, together with means at the lower end of the frame for admitting pressurized fluid such as air or steam into the bag so that the bag is expanded and pressed against the inside of the garment in the performance of the finishing operation.

One example of a conventional machine of this general type is disclosed in United States Patent No. 2,927,718, issued Mar. 8, 1960, to Nolan C. Jackson. In accordance with conventional practice and as disclosed in the aforementioned patent, it is customary to provide mechanical means for adjusting the bag, that is to say, by yieldably constricting the bag at one or more locations to prevent overdistention thereof, such as would cause stretching of the garment being processed.

The principal object of the present invention is to substantially simplify the structure and operation of a machine of this type, particularly from the standpoint of permitting the bag to automatically adjust itself under inflationary pressure to the size of a particular garment under treatment, so that it is not at all necessary to utilize conventional bag adjusting means of a mechanical type or to manually reset such adjusting means each time a garment of a different size is draped over the bag.

As such, the present invention provides a conventional garment finishing machine with a special casing or conduit for directing the pressurized fluid such as air or steam into the upper portion of the bag, in conjunction with a special bag structure wherein the lower portion of the bag is provided at selected areas with open mesh material, affording opening means through which the pressurized fluid maiy escape to the outside after being diverted downwardly from the upper portion of the bag. This permits the bag to automatically adjust itself to the shape of the garment without stretching the latter and without the use of mechanical bag constricting means.

The invention is simple in construction, eflicient and dependable in operation, and readily adaptable for embodiment in various kinds of garment finishing machines of the general type above mentioned.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter ice described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a garment finishing machine embodying the fluid directing conduit or casing of the invention, the bag not being illustrated in this view for purposes of showing the frame of the machine itself.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view, similar to that shown in FIGURE 1, but with the bag in position on the machine frame.

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary, enlarged vertical sectional view of the subject shown in FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is an elevational view of the bag per se; and

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view, taken substantially in the plane of the line 55 in FIG- URE 3.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings in detail, a garment finishing machine designated generally by the reference character 10 is illustrated, the same for most part being of a conventional type, as for example, of the general type disclosed in the aforementioned Jackson Patent No. 2,927,718. As such, the machine 10 does not require a detailed description, although for reference purposes it may be noted that the machine includes a suitable base 11 containing a steam generating unit 12 and having an air blower 13 in communication therewith, so that fluid under pressure, such as for example, steam generated by the unit 12 or air propelled by the blower 13, may be discharged from a pressurized fluid outlet member 14 on top of the base 11 into a bag designated generally by the reference numeral 15.

The bag 15 is supported on a vertically elongated frame 16 extending upwardly from the base 11, it being noted that the fluid outlet member 14 is disposed in the lower portion of the frame.

One aspect of the invention deals with the provision of a casing or conduit 17 which surrounds the lower portion of the bag supporting frame 16 and, consequently, it also surrounds the pressurized fluid outlet member 14, as will be readily apparent from FIGURE 3.

The casing or conduit 17 is upwardly tapered and terminates in an upwardly opening, restricted throat 17a, so that when pressurized fluid such as air or steam is discharged into the casing by the outlet member 14, such pressurized fluid is directed into the upper portion of the bag 15 to press the latter against the inside of a garment position on the bag for treatment.

As the pressurized fluid passes through the restricted throat 17a of the casing 17, its velocity is increased so that the pressurized fluid is directed primarily against the upper portion of the bag and of the garment on the bag, but since in this region the pressurized fluid can flow outwardly only through the sleeves and possibly around the neck of the garment, the excess pressurized fluid in the upper portion of the bag is diverted downwardly into the lower portion of the bag where provisions are made for the fluid to escape as will be hereinafter described. Ac cordingly, the bag is capable of being inflated sutficiently to press against the inside of a garment under treatment, while automatically conforming to the shape and size of that garment, without any danger of stretching the garment and without the necessity of employing mechanical bag restricting or adjusting means such as are conventional in the art.

At this point it may be noted that the garment finishing bag 15 is made of natural or synthetic fabric material such as nylon, or the like, and that the shoulder portions thereof, indicated at 18 are made of open nylon mesh, or the like, so that the pressurized fluid such as air or steam may escape through the sleeves of the garment as already mentioned. Similarly, the intermediate portion or the waist portion 19 of the bag is also made of open mesh material, but significantly, the lower portion of the bag, indicated at 20, is provided with a circumferentially extending, open mesh material strip 21 and with a plurality of circumferentially spaced, vertically extending strips 22, also of open mesh material, so that the excess pressurized fluid which is discharged into the upper portion of the bag through the casing throat 17a and is diverted downwardly as already noted, may escape outwardly from the lower portion of the bag through the mesh material strips 21, 22. This escape of the excess pressurized fluid is further facilitated by the upwardly tapered configuration of the casing 17 which, as will be clearly apparent from FIG- URE 3, causes the casing to be spaced radially inwardly from the lower portion of the bag 15, whereby downward and outward flow of the pressurized fluid in the lower portion of the bag is enhanced and the bag as a whole is capable of automatically adjusting itself to the size and shape of the garment under treatment, without the use of conventional mechanical bag adjusting or constricting means.

It will be understood, of course, that escape of pressurized fluid from the lower end of the bag itself is prevented by the provision of a conventional tie cord 23, used for tying the lower end of the bag around the upper portion of the machine base 11, as shown in FIGURE 3.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the inven tion as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. The combination of a garment finishing machine including a base, a bag supporting frame extending upwardly from said base, an outlet for pressurized fluid provided on the base in the lower portion of said frame, a bag supported by and enclosing said frame, and a casing provided on the lower portion of the frame around said fluid outlet and extending upwardly therefrom, said casing having an open tapered top whereby pressurized fluid discharged by said outlet may be directed upwardly into the upper portion of said bag, said tapered top employed for increasing the velocity of pressurized fluid delivered into the upper portion of the bag and to space the upper end portion of the casing from the bag thereby expanding the same against a garment, selected areas of the lower portion of the bag being formed from open mesh material and affording opening means through which the pressurized fluid may escape outwardly after being diverted downwardly from the upper portion of the bag, whereby the bag may automatically adjust itself to the shape of a garment without stretching the latter and without the use of mechanical bag constricting means.

2. The combination as defined in claim 1 wherein said selected areas of open mesh material of said bag include a plurality of circumferentially spaced strips in the lower portion of said bag extending vertically from a height immediately above the bottom of said bag, and a strip extending circumferentially in the lower portion of said bag along a periphery immediately above the bottom of said bag, and further wherein the upper portion of the bag includes a closed shoulder portion formed from said open mesh material.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,587,745 3/1952 Maurer 2237O 2,679,956 6/1954 Richterkessing 2237O 2,969,897 1/1961 Paris 223-67 3,262,615 7/1966 Killey 22367 JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

G. V. LARKIN, Examiner. 

